The common tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum (Mill.), syn. Solanum lycopersicum is widely cultivated domestically and internationally. Of the approximately 500,000 acres of tomatoes grown annually in the United States, roughly 40% are grown for fresh market consumption, with the balance grown for processing.
One important goal of tomato breeding is to combine various desirable traits in a single variety/hybrid. Such desirable traits may include greater yield, resistance to diseases, insects or other pests, tolerance to heat and drought, better agronomic quality, higher nutritional value, enhanced growth rate and improved fruit properties. While breeding efforts to date have provided a number of useful tomato lines and varieties with beneficial traits, there remains a need in the art for new lines and varieties with further improved traits.